“The Promotion” an Unexpected Pleasure

Published June 13th, 2008

“The Promotion” is an unexpected pleasure from first-time director Steve Conrad, writer of “Pursuit of Happyness” and this film.
John C. Reilly is always great, but in “Promotion” he is teamed with Seann William Scott, best-known as the jerk Stiffler in the sophomoric “American Pie” comedies.

Well surprise, Scott gains credibility as nice-guy Doug, an assistant manager at a Chicago grocery store.
Doug is married to the adorable Jen (Jenna Fischer), a hard-working nurse.

Doug and Jen live in a crummy apartment with thin walls that allow the sound of their banjo-playing gay neighbors to bleed through. They have been saving for 12 years to buy a place of their own. Now Doug’s boss Scott (Fred Atmisen) has said he is a “shoo-in” as manager of a new Donaldson’s.

Doug is so confident he goes out on a limb and puts a down payment on a dream house.
The shoo-in becomes less sure when Richard (John C. Reilly) arrives from Quebec with his Scottish wife (Lili Taylor).
Richard is also under consideration for the new post. So begins an escalating competition between two basically nice guys. The running joke is that Richard is from Canada, where even motorcycle gang members are nice.

Writer Conrad works in several hot topics, including 12-step programs, corporate mentality, race relations and even mental retardation, all tastefully. This is not a raunchy Judd Apatow romp. It’s a lot more like real life.

Three stars

“The Hulk” is an also-ran in the summer superhero sweepstakes. Robert Downey, Jr.’s “Iron Man” is still the reigning champ, but Edward Norton gives it the good old college try.

Much has been written about Norton’s disagreements over the film. Now I can see why. It’s like this is two separate movies, the first about earnest, sincere, infected Bruce Banner and the second about Godzilla-like monsters, with lovely Liv Tyler stuck somewhere in between them and her villainous father (William Hurt).

Methinks Marvel Comics must have overruled Norton and Leterrier’s more artistic aspirations in favor of dueling monsters in New York.

Two and a half stars

“Children of Huang Shi” is an unexpected pleasure from Roger Spottiswoode
It’s an inspirational movie that isn’t gooey or sweet and has no heavy religious message. Best of all, it is based on the true story of a young, naïve British journalist who finds his destiny in a ruined Chinese orphanage.
The year is 1938 and China is under siege from within and without.

The Japanese are advancing toward Nanking and destroying everything in their path. Chinese defense is divided by soldiers loyal to Nationalist and Communist factions.

Fresh from Oxford, George Hogg (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) seeks adventure and a byline. Posing as a Red Cross driver he gets into the embattled City of Nanking. Through volunteer nurse Lee Pearson (Radha Mitchell) Hogg learns of a devastated orphanage and its 50 sickly, malnourished, unruly inhabitants.

Slowly (too slowly for most American viewers) Hogg is drawn into the children’s plight and rises to the occasion in a heroic manner.
Since we are such buddies with China now, this is a reminder Westerners and Chinese can coexist, learn and help each other.